Judge Upholds Nassau County Ban on Transgender Athletes in Women’s Sports

The ACLU’s New York division says it will appeal the decision.

File photograph shows members of the Long Island Roller Rebels practicing in Seaford, New York state on Mar. 19, 2023. Jeenah Moon/AP Photo

A New York judge on Oct. 6 upheld a Long Island county law banning male athletes from participating in women’s sports at county-run facilities.

State Supreme Court Justice R. Bruce Cozzens wrote in the ruling that the ban still allows these athletes to participate in coed sports leagues at county facilities, while protecting women and girls.

The roller derby league, the Long Island Roller Rebels, had sued over the law, arguing it violated state anti-discrimination laws.

“The Court agrees that this Local Law is narrowly tailored to achieve the objectives and does not categorically exclude transgender individuals from athletic participation,” Cozzens wrote. “The law regulates access to women and girls categories in the County run facilities for organized athletic events.”

He also denied the plaintiff’s request that male athletes on female teams not be required to disclose their transgender identity.

“Potentially that creates an even greater risk to the females since they would not even be aware (nor it is assumed would they be permitted to inquire) if a player was a biological male,” the judge wrote.

The judge earlier had denied a request from defendants to temporarily pause enforcement of the ban, which was ordered by an appeals court, while the lawsuit continued to be heard by the courts.

In a statement on Monday, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said, “We are grateful that the court found our legislation to be valid and legal.”

The ban was first issued by Blakeman through a 2024 executive order with the stated aim of protecting women’s spaces in county facilities.

“What we are saying here today with our executive order is that, if a league or team identifies themselves or advertises themselves to be a girls’ or women’s league or team, then biological males should not be competing in those leagues,” Blakeman said during a news conference at the time.

The Long Island Roller Rebels then challenged the order in court and won. Nassau County Supreme Court Judge Francis Ricigliano ruled in May 2024 that such a ban required the approval of the Nassau County Legislature.

The Republican-majority Legislature then passed the ban into law in June 2024. The derby submitted another legal challenge, arguing that it violated the state’s anti-discrimination laws.

The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), the ACLU’s New York division, said it will appeal Monday’s decision.

“Today’s decision sends a chilling message that trans people don’t belong in Nassau County, but the fight doesn’t end here,” Gabriella Larios, staff attorney at the NYCLU, said. “We are confident that New York courts will ultimately see the ban for what it is: unlawful and discriminatory.”

The county says it receives federal funding under Title IX.

“Title IX permits distinctions based on biological sex in athletics,” Cozzens ruled. “There is no support in Title lX to suggest that sex discrimination includes gender identity,” he added, referring to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Department of Education. et al v. Louisiana et. al.

“It is clear that Nassau County’s stated purpose for the Local Law is to protect women and girls in sports.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.